Cougars to Play MWC-Undefeated Rams Thursday, Cowgirls Saturday

PROVO -- After splitting two conference matches last week, the BYU women’s volleyball team (9-8, 4-2) will fight two Mountain West Conference opponents on the road Thursday and Saturday. Thursday the Cougars will play MWC-undefeated Colorado State (14-3, 6-0) Saturday at 7 p.m. MT and Thursday they will play Wyoming (10-10, 1-5) at 1 p.m. MT.

“Colorado State is certainly playing some great volleyball right now so in order to beat them we will be patient, intelligent and persistent on their court,” said BYU head coach Shay Goulding. “If we stay true to game plan and aggressively execute on the serve and serve receive aspect of the game we will do very well. We have a lot of athletes stepping up in big ways right now so I like our chances.”

BYU leads the all-time record against the Rams at 48-22-1. After a three-game losing streak last year, the Cougars hosted the Rams and came out with a win in five games. Colorado State boasts a 10-match winning streak going into Thursday’s match.

As for Wyoming, BYU leads the series 63-4, the last meeting also coming from last season, the Cougars winning 3-0. The last nine-straight matches were in favor of the Cougars.

“We will continue to focus on the serve and serve receive battle as we go into Laramie,” said Goulding. “If we serve aggressively, Wyoming will have a hard time getting past our defense. I expect Wyoming to come out strong and eager to win, so we will have to put pressure on them early and keep it on through the match.”

BYU leads the MWC in blocks, averaging 2.95 blocks per set while Colorado State leads in kills averaging 13.1 per set. BYU is also No. 5 in the nation in blocks per set.

Freshman Nicole Warner leads the conference in blocks with 1.34 per set while Senior Kayla Walker leads the MWC in points (4.68/set) and kills (4.16/set).

Both matches can be followed on GameTracker by clicking on the link on the BYU women’s volleyball schedule page HERE.